We have had a wet week. #WotW

This week my Word of the Week is:

I don't know about the rest of the country but since Monday up here in Ashington in the North East we seem to have had nothing but rain!

Last week I had the trouble with the washing machine and not being able to wash clothes, this week I have struggled to dry them. We don't have a tumble dryer. Well we do but it's one of the faulty one's and it's sat in the shed so I have been putting everything on the clothes dryers inside. Ugh! 

Over the weekend it wasn't wet....Saturday was quite chilly but on Sunday it was glorious! We had a fantastic day out at the local street fair....My highlight was watching the girls on one of the inflatable rides. Becky couldn't get the hang of jumping over the bar and Ellie couldn't get the hang of ducking. lol

Becky woke up on Monday morning with a sore head and not feeling well....I sent her to school thinking with a bit of fresh air and being busy would make her feel better.....It didn't. By lunchtime she was home after being sick. It turns out there was several children sent home. The teacher thought it was a bug....I am putting it down to being at the fair all day, in the sunshine and having too many sweet things. Candyfloss, sweets & slushies....

On Tuesday I seemed to be in and out all day.....In the rain! I'd just dry off and have to go back out. It was Ellie's class assembly at school and it was all about what they had been doing in drama. It was a lot of fun and all the children did so well...Ellie also had a check up at the dentist. Last time we went she hadn't been brushing as well as she should have been so the dentist had her back early.....This time he was very impressed! Phew! She has also grown 5 teeth in 3 months....lol The dentist was quite amazed. 

Yesterday was the wettest day of the week.....Ellie was supposed to be going on a school trip to the beach. Her teacher was adamant earlier in the week that they were still going even if it was raining. Waterproofs and wellies were to be worn. I rang the school yesterday morning all ready for an argument....If the school trip was on I wasn't going to send Ellie to school....The head teacher answered the phone and said it was cancelled! Phew! They could still go in non-uniform and take their packed lunches which made Ellie very happy! She does love a packed lunch.....

For all I care it can rain all weekend....hehehe We have no plans at all and after a couple of Sundays out I am looking forward to a lazy, pj day!

10 things my kids argue about!

My girls argue a lot....They will argue about anything and everything....Even stupid things like who gets to walk through a door first or who get's their tea first....Eesh! 

1. One of them is looking at the other.....

I hear "mam, she's looking at me" at least once a day. So what you are bound to look at each other at some point.....In fact to see she was looking at you, you must have been looking at her.....

2. Knickers and socks.

Even though there is 5 years between my girls they still fit into some of the same clothes....Knickers and socks cause the biggest arguments.....I buy them separate colours so they know who's is who but it doesn't stop them stealing each others....I have seen them putting their shoes on when one notices that the other has her socks on....They can't just let them wear them though...They have to be removed. 

3. Sweets.

And who has the most....I still have to count them out and share them like I did when they were small children. It has it's advantages. If there is an odd one I get it. lol

4. The TV volume.

My girls will watch TV when they go to bed in their own separate rooms.....One will turn the TV up and the other will turn theirs up to to drown out the sound of the other one's.....It gets to the point where I can hear it downstairs. I will shout upstairs to them and they of course argue about who has it the loudest and they can't hear....It usually ends with both of the TV's being switched off....

5. Scooters in the cupboard.

The girls both scooter to school and for convenience we keep the scooters in the cupboard under the stairs but one will always put their scooter on top of the others and they have arguments galore about new scratches or marks appearing on their scooter. I have given them the option of putting them in the shed where there is more room but that would be just too much effort.

6. Computer time.

We limit Becky's time on electronics because if we didn't she would stay on her tablet/laptop all day.....Ellie will spend 5 minutes on her tablet then go off and do something else. If Becky has 3 hours a day on her's I can guarantee that Ellie hasn't had half of that time but when Becky has used her time up she gets narky with Ellie which of course causes an argument. Becky will hover around Ellie on the laptop or question what she is doing....

7. Washing the dishes.

One washes and one dries....They argue about who's turn it is to do which and then they can't do it at the same time or else they will argue in the kitchen....

8. Putting toys away.

They will both play with toys but when it comes to tidying up they will only put away what they physically got out regardless of whether they played with it or not. Arguments will always happen when it comes to tidy up time....

9. Hairbrushes.

I bought the girls each a hairbrush because I was sick of them arguing over using the same one....It wasn't that they were using it at the same time it was the fact that they don't want to catch nits from each other....They rarely have nits but one did once and passed them to the other...

10. The X-Box.

We have the X-Box downstairs and they will both happily play Minecraft until one of them does something the other didn't want and all hell breaks loose....In the few years that we have had the X-Box I'm sure they have spent more time banned off it from arguing than being allowed on it. lol

I know it's normal for siblings to argue and fight.....I remember I used to with my brother....lol My girls do argue but they're not too bad. Over the years of parenting I have learned how to stop the arguments before they get too big....

Fun at the fair & Lunch out....

Sunday is usually our lazy day but last Sunday we were out and about and Sunday just gone we were too.....Ashington Fayre was on and it's always a good day out. 

The sun was shining and we walked to the other end of town.....We heard the fair before we saw it. Of course the girls wanted to go on everything!

We were walking around and there was people handing out leaflets....I took one which was for a restaurant that we had never tried before. La Cucina Family Restaurant with a 10% off voucher. They had Sunday lunches on the menu so we decided to give it a try. £8.95 was not too bad for two courses.....

The garlic butter for the bread was amazing....I could have eaten much more. hehehe Stu decided to get the two courses. Potato skins for starters and a roast dinner, Becky had a margherita pizza, Ellie had chicken nuggets and chips and I just had the chicken dinner...

They brought Stu's starters and the kids meals but decided to leave me to wait until Stu was ready for his main course....Grr! The food was so fresh and the chicken nuggets were real chicken and not processed! It made a nice change....When my food did arrived it looked amazing! The Yorkshire pudding was huge and freshly made....The kids loved their meal but Stu and I were not overly impressed....It was chicken on the bone which we weren't keen on and there was plenty of greens but not enough potato or turnip. The waitress telling us not to put salt on the food because it had already been seasoned got my goat and when she offered mint sauce and didn't give me the option of putting my own on left me feeling a bit meh about the place which is a shame because the staff were mostly amazing and the prices were great.....

With our bellies full we decided to go back to the fair for some more rides and of course get some candyfloss, slushies and sweets.....

We passed on the Hook a Duck stall....I can't believe the price they charge now. £3 for toys that I know you can get from the Pound Shops. Eesh!

We had another great Sunday....Next week I am planning on a quiet one though. I'm thinking a lie in, pj's and not leaving the house. hehehe

Perfect presents for teenagers from Wicked Uncle.

My teen Becky who's 14 is usually so hard to buy for....She is at an age where she doesn't really play with toys and tries to spend all her time playing on her tablet. Wicked Uncle gave me the chance to get Becky some cool gifts and try out their website.

Wicked Uncle is a fantastic site which sells a whole host of toys for children of all ages...Everything is categorised by age and sex....They are not trying to gender stereotype, they do it this way people can find what they are looking for fast....

I decided to choose the gifts for Becky without her knowing and I was spoilt for choice....They have cars that climb walls, rainbow cake sets, mood lamps, cool fashion accessories, accessories for smart phones,  gadgets, creative gifts, and much more. Everything seemed reasonably priced too. 

I eventually chose:

Emoji puzzle book - £9.99

Test your emoji-reading skills with this hardback book packed with over 350 fun puzzles to solve. Challenge your brain with these unique and inventive emoji puzzles covering music, books, TV, films, sport, history and culture. Put your emoji thinking cap on and solve the three different skill levels from simple pop songs to much harder famous scenes from blockbuster movies.

Chocolate Vegetables - £8.95

These were perfect when they arrived. Becky poked the carrot and it snapped!

Each punnet contains five different family favourites, recreated in gorgeous Belgian dark and white chocolate: crunchy carrot, vibrant sweetcorn, ruby red onion, rich mushroom, and a crisp bundle of asparagus. Handmade by the elves at ChoconChoc in Somerset, the fun way to get your five-a-day and much tastier than they look!

Comic Strip Tablet Cushion - £19.95

Unique and fun handmade cushion to prop up your tablet or iPad, leaving your hands free for other things. Lightweight, with a fun comic strip design, this innovative foam cushion accessory fits tablets of all shapes and sizes, measuring 31cm wide and 15cm tall. Perfect for supporting your tablet, leaving hands free for important tasks like nibbling on snacks or endlessly texting your friends! Extremely comfortable, the clever design is both stylish and practical. Like all good ideas, simply brilliant.

Ordering was so simple.....Much like other websites add everything to your basket and checkout. When you do you even get the chance to gift wrap the gifts. The first present wrapped is £2.95 and each additional present is £1.50. There is plenty of different designs of gift wraps to choose from and you can even add a greetings card for £1.50. This would be perfect for sending to someone who you won't see on their special day....

There is several delivery options....I chose the Standard delivery. Ordered on Friday lunchtime and our parcel arrived on Monday which was a lot quicker than I expected....

I left the parcel for Becky to open when she came home from school and she was very excited. She had no idea what was in it....



I am pleased to say Becky loved everything! There were a lot of smiles when opening the box and she was so excited! 

Her favourite thing was the laptop cushion and has used it everyday since she received it....It is so useful. Instead of holding her tablet she has her hands free to do other things....Like eat. lol The chocolate vegetables didn't last the evening and she said they were very tasty....She thought they were fun. The Emoji book has been a great hit too. She is working her way through the puzzles. She understands them, I don't. lol

Becky has already started writing her birthday list from the Wicked Uncle website....There are things on there which I would have never have thought of buying and things that I didn't know existed. It is a great site full of fantastic gifts and wicked ideas!

We were sent these items free of charge in exchange for this review....All thoughts and opinions are our own!

Our Weekly Meal Plan!! - #mealplanningmonday

Last weeks meal plan went pretty well....I cooked the chicken dinner on Monday and sweated for most of the day....I ended eating it at about 9pm when it had cooled down a little. On Thursday the prawn cocktail salad was scrapped....It was pretty cold here and I cooked a roast pork dinner and on Sunday we had a day out at the local fair and had lunch out. It was so good not having to cook or wash the dishes. Another roast dinner.....That's 3 in a week. I do love them though.

This week on the menu we have:

Monday - Breaded Chicken Goujons, coleslaw and potato salad....

Tuesday - Cheese hamwiches....

Wednesday - Saucy sausage pasta.....

Thursday - Bean Sweetcorn And Roasted Pepper Burgers with wedges....

Friday - Pizza....

Saturday - Sweet and sour chicken and rice....

Sunday - Pie & mash....

What are you eating this week?

Tennis. #MySundayPhoto

A photo everyday for a year - Week 25 #Project365

This past week has been a strange one.....The first half was glorious sunshine the second half was not so bright....We had a couple of storms and it has cooled down a lot. This better have not been our summer! I hate the heat but I do like the sunshine.

Now for a photo every day!

168/365 - 17th June

Paddling pool fun....

169/365 - 18th June

Off to a fun day at the park....It wasn't much fun which was a shame. There was hardly anything there so we went to the playground for half an hour until the heat beat us....

170/365 - 19th June

My teen had an exciting delivery from Wicked Uncle. The review will be on here next week.

171/365 - 20th June

Our washer broke down again....The same fault that we had last month....The engineer came out and it was fixed by Wednesday lunchtime. Of course it broke when I had tons of washing to do....

172/365 - 21st June

While some people in the country had the hottest day in June since 1976 in Ashington where I live it was quite grey and chilly compared to what it had been....We had thunder....I didn't manage to catch any lightning though.

173/365 - 22nd June

I won't be eating too many of these in one go. After 2 my mouth was burning....lol

174/365 - 23rd June

My youngest says it's not fair that she gets homework every weekend and her sister gets none. Her sister gets to play on her tablet while she is writing. Not fair at all....Ellie can't wait to go to secondary school so she doesn't have homework. hehehe

A broken washing machine & no towels. #WotW

This week my Word of the Week is:

I have been trying to come up with a word but nothing much has happened and what has seems to have revolved around washing! 

Over the weekend we had glorious sunshine which was perfect for father's day.....The beginning of the week was lovely too.....The kids had been playing in the paddling pool for days. Ellie has decided that if she goes in the paddling pool she doesn't need a bath or shower. I had to tell her it doesn't work like that. lol The kids had used nearly all the towels drying themselves, putting on the floor and they even dropped a couple in the paddling pool.....It's not like we don't have a lot of towels. We have about 20 big one's. The kids just got a bit carried away. lol

Of course my washing machine decided it would be the perfect time to break down again when we were in desperate need of towels.....

According to twitter (I checked) It was only the 15th of May last time we got the washer repaired. A wire had came loose inside which meant it would run through the wash cycle but the drum wouldn't actually move.....The same thing happened again.....The engineer was hopeless this time. Complaining of a bad back, our kitchen been too small to work and saying we are over filling the washing machine....Last month the other engineer had no problems. Grr! He thinks he has secured the loose wire but I'm secretly hoping he hasn't.....The repair/care plan we have says that if something breaks down 3 times with the same fault we get a brand new appliance for the same value. We've had our washer about 7 years so we're due a new one....hehehe

So our washer was fixed by Wednesday lunchtime....That's when the heavens decided to open and we had a thunder storm....Ugh! Yesterday I managed to get a load dried inside and one on the line when the sun decided to show it's self.....All morning it had looked like rain.

Becky has been struggling at school with the heat....Her school has a glass roof and huge windows so it is basically a big greenhouse....She has been coming in every day and going straight in the shower just to cool down....More towels used....lol On Wednesday evening she was using hand towels to dry herself. lol 

I still have a couple of baskets of washing to catch up with and the beds need changing. It's a good job the weather hasn't been that warm here the last couple of days. I would have had a right job keeping Ellie out of the pool but at the same time I need some sunshine to dry the washing....lol

I'm now a trendy mam....

Over the past few weeks I have been buying myself some new clothes....Both my girls have said I look trendy and so cool....Yay! I feel like I am winning at life....

It all started a few weeks ago....I was in dire need of some new trainers....The one's I had were about 8 years old. I treated myself and bought some fancy Nike T Lite XI Ladies Trainers for £28.00 from Sports Direct.....

While I was on there I decided I needed a thin coat or a hoodie to wear on the school run for those days where it's warm and dry but not warm enough to just wear a t-shirt. I came across the Puma No1 Logo Hoody for £14. The size 18 that I got fits well but I would have liked it baggier... 

Then I started to get a bit carried away.....I saw some jeggings which were only £4.99. I'm not usually one to wear leggings or jeggings but I thought I'd give them a try. I also got a couple of Miso Long Line Yarn Dye Boyfriend T Shirts. One in grey and black and one in white and black. I couldn't just get one because they were offer. Two for £9.00. They are so comfy and just the right length.

I was very happy with my purchases....So much so that last week when my ballet pump shoes got a hole in the first place I thought of looking was Sports Direct....

I only went on for a cheap pair of shoes....I got those. I actually bought two pairs. lol Some Miss Fiori Canvas Mary Jane Ladies Shoes for £3.50 and some Slazenger Canvas Ladies Slip Ons for £4.00....These actually look so much better in real life compared to online. They are so comfy too!

While I was on there I thought I might as well have look to see if they had any more Miso tops....I have never heard of the brand before I bought the first two tops and I liked them so much....I found the Miso Printed Boyfriend T Shirts. One in grey the other in white and they had unicorns on which has annoyed Ellie greatly....lol These were two for £8.00. 

I also bought another pair of jeggings....The same brand, just a different colour. I was over wearing the first pair and I don't want to be known as that person who never changes her bottoms....lol Jeans are the thing of the past for me now. hehehe

My teen has already eyeing up my new clothes.....She said I could wash the hoodie and shrink it and then she could have it....Hmm! I don't think so. lol

Stand Up To Bullying!

Today is Stand Up To Bullying Day....I think in one way or another most people have been bullied in their life....It's a sad, sad shame that bullying still happens especially with what is going on in our world today....

I was bullied all the way through school....For being too quiet, for not having the right trainers, for not shaving my legs enough one day for P.E, for living on a farm, for not living in the right area, for having my dad drop me off at school, for having free school meals, for not being a fast runner.....I could go on. Lots of the reasons I was bullied looking back on now were ridiculous but if someone is out to bully you they will pick on the smallest thing and make it more than it is!

It was never violent....It was name calling, excluding me, and threats being made....It could have been worse but it has still affected me in life. I think I am shy and lack confidence because of the bullies....

As an adult I have been bullied by people in the school playground....The looks, the sly comments. I just let it wash over me and think to myself that I am just there to drop off and pick up my girls....

Both of my girls have been bullied in the past.....

Becky was bullied for a long time by one certain girl in her class.....On and off from nursery until about Year 6. The girl just took a dislike to Becky.....There was name calling and kicking under the table. The teachers would keep stopping it but the girl was relentless. I think the only reason it stopped was because they went up to secondary school and they were separated. I am not blaming the primary school. The girl was just a nasty piece of work....

We still had a few issues to start with at the secondary school but they were soon stopped when the police became involved because things were happening outside of school.....Some forms of bullying are illegal: serious physical violence or assault, theft, repeated harassment or intimidation e.g. threats, abusive phone calls or messages, or hate crime.

I have blogged about Ellie being bullied.....She was bullied by one girl off and on for a few years....Then another group of girls in her class. I did another post updating saying how everything was great....Ellie is now best friends with the person who was the main bully! I do believe now it is a genuine friendship.....There was a few issues with Ellie verging on being a bully.....I was so ashamed of her. I think she had just got a little cocksure of herself. She seems to have went back to being nice and friendly with everyone.....I did have serious words with her though.

With both of my girls I was very pro-active in getting the bullying stopped as soon as I could. Thankfully the schools were brilliant. 

There has been times walking home from school with Ellie where I have caught kids being nasty and bullying someone....I have had words with them. I have then the next day gone in to see a teacher and reported the events...I will not stand by and watch someone being bullied....

According to Channel Mum the top ten reasons children are bullied are:

Being clever – 19 per cent
Not being cool – 13 per cent
Being overweight – 10 per cent
Not being pretty / attractive – 9 per cent
Not being sporty – 9 per cent
Being pretty / attractive – 8 per cent
Hair colour  - 5 per cent  
Family being tight for money – 5 per cent
Race / religion – 5 per cent
Being skinny – 3 per cent

It seems like kids can't win.....If they are overweight they're bullied but if they're skinny they are bullied too....We tell kids to try hard at school but if they are too clever they could get bullied....Eesh! Children can be so cruel.

Have you been bullied in the past or have your children?

A Fabulous Father's Day....

We had a lovely weekend and on Sunday my fella was spoilt rotten....We all managed to have a lie in until about 10am. Phew! Ellie was on about getting up early to give Stu his cards and presents....

Stu loved everything....He got socks, a mug, glass, hankies, a biscuit tin, a new screwdriver set and of course his cards....He was very impressed and loved all the super hero things....

We had big plans for the day.....We were going to go to the a fun day at the local park then out for our Sunday lunch....

Ellie and her monkey had matching outfits.....The shorts Ellie had on used to be jeans....I don't know where they came from but she didn't like them and wanted some new clothes for Monkey so Stu made him a little outfit then Ellie decided she wanted to keep the jeans as shorts so she matched...The things we do for our kids....lol

We went off to the park for the fun day but it wasn't exactly fun. There was a couple of stalls, a police van for kids to sit in and a tiny bouncy castle....We were quite disappointed.

We headed off to the playground for half an hour. The kids had a run around and Stu and I sat in the shade. Wow it was hot....

We decided to head home as the sweat was dripping off the kids....We passed by the tiny bouncy castle on the way home which caused a huge kick off from Ellie. She was too big for it and it was full of little kids. She huffed all the way home. Oh joy. 

At home we all sat and ate ice lollies which got Ellie out of her strop.....Going out for lunch was not what anyone wanted....It was too hot to eat a big meal. We had a sandwich and decided that we would just get a takeaway for tea.....

The girls spent the afternoon playing outside and Stu got to just play on his computer with no interruptions.....The water in the paddling pool was freezing but it didn't bother the girls in the slightest....I also gave them the hosepipe to play with. They had a fab afternoon....

They tidied the back yard, got dry and came in to do all the usual Sunday jobs like finding their uniform, finishing off homework and packing their bags.....When they had finished Ellie said she wanted to go back outside to play. Tennis or with a ball I thought. I went out to find her sat in the paddling pool in her PJ's.....lol Oh joy!

Pizza was eaten and the kids went off to bed....Stu had a perfect father's day. The day hadn't quite gone to plan but it worked out well in the end.....

Our Weekly Meal Plan!! - #mealplanningmonday

Another week....Another meal plan.

Last weeks meal plan went pretty well....When I was writing it I knew it was Father's day yesterday but forgot to factor it in to the meal plan.....We ended up getting a takeaway which was just as well. I don't think I could have cooked a chicken casserole in the heat! Wasn't it such a lovely weekend.....I like it when it's hot as long as I don't have to go outside or move much. hehehe

My fella is on late shifts all this week. Ugh. So he won't be eating with the girls and I which means I will be keeping things simple. hehehe. He will make something himself when he gets in....

This week on the menu we have:

Monday - Roast chicken dinner.....

Tuesday - BLT pasta salad....

Wednesday - Hot dogs in buns with fries....

Thursday - Prawn cocktail salad....

Friday - Pizza....

Saturday - Breaded Chicken Goujons, coleslaw and potato salad....

Sunday - A stir fry of some sort....

What are you eating this week?